High-ranking Tren de Aragua members charged with terrorism and international drug distribution

HOUSTON - A five-count superseding indictment has been unsealed charging two Venezuelan nationals and alleged high-ranking members of the designated foreign terrorist organization Tren de Aragua (TdA), announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.   

Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano aka “El Viejo,” 37, and Jose Enrique Martinez Flores aka “Chuqui,” 24, are charged with conspiring to provide and providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization as well as conspiracy and distribution of cocaine in Colombia intended for distribution in the United States. 

A federal grand jury in Houston returned a superseding indictment April 8, which has now been unsealed in its entirety.  

Colombian authorities arrested Martinez Flores March 31 in Colombia pursuant to a provisional arrest warrant the United States had requested. He remains in custody there pending further proceedings. 

Mosquera Serrano remains a fugitive and is now on the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted Fugitives List.

“Transnational criminal gangs and cartels have preyed upon Americans for far too long,” said Ganjei. “That ends now. The Southern District of Texas is committed to smashing these criminal terror groups and will use every available legal tool to do so. It doesn’t matter if you are hiding a continent away; if you hurt U.S. citizens, we will find you and bring you to justice. This is what Operation Take Back America looks like.” 

According to the allegations, Mosquera Serrano and Martinez Flores are charged with one count of conspiring to provide material support to TdA in the form of personnel (including themselves) and services and one count of providing material support to TdA. The indictment also alleges one count of international drug distribution conspiracy based on their involvement in the distribution of five kilograms of cocaine or more and two substantive counts of international drug distribution.

The Department of State designated TdA as a foreign terrorist organization and Specially Designated Global Terrorist Feb. 20. 

According to information presented to the court, Mosquera Serrano is a senior TdA leader who oversees TdA criminal operations across Colombia, Central America and the United States, and Martinez Flores is a high-ranking TdA leader in Bogota, Colombia.  

The charges allege Mosquera Serrano and Martinez Flores caused the delivery of approximately five kilograms or more of cocaine for international distribution, proceeds that were used to further TdA’s criminal goals.

If convicted, they face up to life in prison and a possible $10 million fine. 

If you have any information concerning Mosquera Serrano, please contact the FBI via WhatsApp or Telegram at 281-787-9939. Those with information may also contact their local FBI office, nearest American Embassy or Consulate or can submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

The Department of State’s Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program is offering a reward of up to $3 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Mosquera Serrano. 

The FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Houston Police Department, Harris County Sheriff’s Office, Colombian National Police and the Colombian Attorney General’s Office (Fiscalía General de la Nación). The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Office of Judicial Attaché in Bogotá, Colombia, provided significant assistance. 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Casey N. MacDonald and Anibal J. Alaniz are prosecuting the case along with Deputy Director David C. Smith from the Department of Justice’s Joint Task Force Vulcan (JTFV). 

JTFV was created in 2019 to eradicate MS-13 and now expanded to target TdA and is comprised of U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country. Those include SDTX; Southern and Eastern Districts of New York; Northern District of Ohio; Districts of New Jersey, Utah, Massachusetts, Nevada and Alaska; Eastern District of Texas; Southern District of Florida; Eastern District of Virginia; Southern District of California; and the District of Columbia, as well as the Department of Justice’s National Security Division and the Criminal Division. Additionally, the FBI; DEA; Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Forearms and Explosives; U.S. Marshals Service; and Federal Bureau of Prisons have been essential law enforcement partners with JTFV.

This case is also a part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.